Charles kirk



G. KIRK. DRY GAS METER.

Patented-Peb. 18, 1862.l

i Unirse STATES,

Artur WCE@ CHARLES KIRK, OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIG-NOR TO CHARLES NONSON ANI) STILLMAN MOORE, OF SAME PLACE.

iMPRovEMENTiN DRY GAS-METERS.

Specification lbrniing part oi' Letters Patent No. 34,465, (lated .Fllllflly 18, 185i To zZZ whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES KIRK, of the city and county of New Haven, in the State of Connecticut, have invented a new and'useful Improvement in Dry Gas-lieters; and I do hereby declare that the following is a f ull,clear,

vcrosssection of Fig. 3 out vertically through f the center of one pair of the valves, gas-ports, &c.v Fig. 5 is asection of the double or measuring bellows cut vertically through the diaphragm and wings, showing one oi' the gas` ports for each apartment.

Myiinprovemcfnt consists in so constructing and arranging' the double or measuring bellows in connection with the valves that the 'outer or external Surfaces of ,the two. wings of the bellows when alternately filledywill work the valves ofthe gas-ports, so .that the induc tion-valve for one apartment ot'- the bellows and thefeduction-valve of the other will be simultaneously opened, while the other valves will be closed, so that when .the required quantity of gas shall have passed into one apartment or the bellows it will be so. far ex-v panded that the outer surface, Working on the extremity of one arm of a bcll-crank,'ivill close the two valves which have been opened and open the opposite two, and the two wings of the bellows being firmly and inilexibly corr nected together by an inflexible cross-bar, one apartment must discharge as the other fills;

and, so that the same expansion of the bellows will work the index to register the quantity of gas which has been measured, and asa regulator to counteract the unequal pressure in th'ernain I usea secondary bellows, which receives the gas after it has been measured in the double bellows and passes it out for use.

I make the gas-chest, or apartments which contain the valves, of cast-iron or any other suitable material, substantially in the form shown inFigs. 2 and 3, in two apartments, A and B. One of these apartments, A, receives the gas through the aperture a" before it en ters the bellowsfor measuring-apartments,and the other, B, receives it from the bellows after it has been measured and passes-it out through the aperture a for use.

In the apartment A, I have two gas-ports or Fig. 3. One pairof these gas-ports and valvesis shown in section in its relative positions and of double size iu Fig. 4.

I make the valves of brass or any othersuitable material, substantiallyin thc form shown in Fig. 3 and in section in Fig. 4, (the same for each apartment,)and cover them with soft leather, as shown in Fig.l4, or any other suitable substance.

I make the valve-rodfi of steel or any other suitable material, and fit it gastight by grindingitinto its bearingsjjj, as indicatedin Fig. 3, or by any other suitable means; and I lit the valves to this rod and secure them in their proper positions by binding-screws, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4.

The valve-rod i is rocked to alternately open and closethe valves by means of a vertical Weighted bar, C, which is secu-red to thc 'valve-rod t' by a collar and bindingscrew, k,

' and is worked by two helical springs, l andm,

allas shownin Fig. l. To thclowcr part of this vertical Weighted bar C, I secure a semieircular' piece, D,"with a recess near cach end, as ln and o, into which the ends of the short arms p and q of the two bell-cranks alternately fall', (or are pressed byy springs,) to .hold the valves in their proper position, (two open and twoshut alternately.)

The two helical springs l and ni are attached to twov uncontined tumblers, i" and s, and to the weighted bar C, so that when one side of the double or measuring bellows is expanding (by being filled with gas) its external surface acts on one of the tuniblers, and in forcing it A will throw the weighted bar 'C to the position shown'in Fig. 1, which will close the recentlyopen valves and open those which were recentlyclosed. v

I- make the double, er measuringbellows with a castiron or'other inflexible diaphragm,

E, attached vtoa bedplate, K', as indicated in .ection in Fig. 5, alud the two wings or vibratlng parts FfandG of thin plate-iron lo'r any other'snitable inflexible material, and completeI each apartment with properly-prepared leather or othermaterial which is sniiciently Hexibleand impervious'tofgas, as shown atI-I and I, Figs. 1 and 5. Through this bed-plate K'and the base of the diaphragm E, I make gas-ports, as u ando, Fig. 5, to 'correspond with the gas-ports a b afin the gas-chest, Fig. 2, so that the gas may alternately pass intoV and out of the measuring-apartments as the operation of the valves will allow. I secure this bed-'plate K, Fig. 5, to; the top of the gas- Vchest, Fig. 2, as shown y manner that ythe gas-ports will properly correspond. i v

I secure two pieces, t and t', on the outside -of the wings F and G of the double bellows, which serve as supports for antiffriction rollers which work 'the tnmblers r and sto stretch out or strain the helical springs Z and m, and to the pieces tand t', I secure a cross-bar, w, to brace and keep the two wings F and G constantly at the same distance, (which is equal to one apartment being full and the otherl empty;) or I use any other suitable means to keep the wings F and Gat a constant distance. Having constructed and arranged the several parts as described, I let the gas into the apartment A of the gas-chest througlr the aperture w, Fig. 3, when the double bellows is in the situation represented in Fig. 1, where the valves are open to allow the gas to passv ont of the apartment GI to be burned, and to admit the gasinto the apartment `F H to be measured. The admitted gas will expand the apartment F II,so that the anti-friction'rollers will?` force back the tumbler i and stretch outthe helical spring Z till it is suiiciently strained, and the piecet will come in contact with` the point ofthe longarm y of the bell-crank and force it back until the poi'ntof th'e' short arm p is raised out of the recess n, when the force ofthe strained spring Z will carry the weighted bar .C by the center to the left, and suiiciently rock the 'valve-rodi to close the two' Valves which had been open and open the two which had been closed, and the weighted bar C' will also carry over the semicircularpiece D, so that the point of the short. arm q of the other bell-crank will fall into the recess o and firmly hold the val ves in their positions. The movement willI then be the recrease of the in Fig. 1, in such af motion of the' verse, so that th'e expansion of the apartment G I will stretch the'spring m and force back the upper end of thel long arm z of thc other bell-y crank, &c., and bring the .whole apparatus -again to the position represented in Fig. 41as .continually measuring the gas.

at first, thus and then discharging it at the aperture a', Fig. To register the gas thus measured, I use a sliding bar,c, so constructed and attached that-it w`ill be worked by the alternate expansion of the two parts of the measuringbellows by means of adj usting-screws, as d', one on each side, so that vwhenthe slide cis moved' inthe direction indicated by the dart a spring hand or dog (not seen) will revolve a wheel (not seen)andcarry theindex or pointere' i one degree on thedial-plate L in the direction indicated by the dart, and that wheel will move others in the usual way, so as-to carry an index, as M, and soon, Vto any desired extent.

To prevent the gas from blowing (at the burner) or any other bad ei'ect from the `inpressure in the main, I use aml additional bellows, as N, which receives the measured gas from ,the part B of the gas-chest .(by means of the aperture a', Fig. 3) through Y tube O. To cover the inner'end of this''tnbe O, I use a clapper-valve, which opens inward, as indicated by dots near P, to close whichA valve I use an elbow-shaped lever, as indicated by dots at R," which works'on a ful-'- crum-pin near S, and its long arm'isattached to the upper portion of 'the-vibrating part of the bellows I bellows is fully expanded the short arm will press upon and close the valve P, so; that no change of ,pressure affects the passage of the gas through the tubevU, except the pressure of the spring'(not seen) which is used to close the bellowsN. Q i Y I am4 aware'that drygas-me'ters have been made vin which a swinging or vibrating dia.-4

phragmlhasloperated to open and close the valves, and'that flexible diaphragms havebeen used where their operation might have been connected with the valves. I therefore do not claim either ofthem or any apparatus in which i a moving or yielding diaphragm is used or suitable for' use as a dry gas-meter; but

What I claim as niyi'nvention, and desire to v secure by Letters Patent, is

1. So constructing 'and operating a drygas` meter that the alternate expansion-of the twov apartments of the double bellows (while it.l regulate the vopening andclosing of the valves which admit-thegas. .alternately into the apartments, toA be -measured, and (after being measured) allow it to j pass out for use, when the'whole is constructf. ed, arranged, and tted for use substantially measures the gas) will as herein described. y 4

2. The method of opening and closingqthe two pairs of -valves by means ofthe valverod i and the helical springs Z and.m, when they arranged, connected, and fitted to pro duce 'thefresult substantially asheroin de- A scribed.

N,fas at T, so that when the 3. The herein-described method of registcr? own expansion and allow it to 'be opened by ing' the quantity of gas thus measured by the v vits contraction, substantially as herein 'deal'ternate expansion of the two apartments of scribed. the double bellows by means ofthe slide and s dog or h and, substantially as herein described. (JHARLES KIRK' 4. The use of the additional bellows N to VVitn'esses: counteract the varying pressure in the main W. H., NETTLETON,

'When tted to close its induction-valve by, its AR. FITZGERALD.` 

